Consumers are fickle. We know that as fact. But often consumers are right in their conviction to stay away and leave a product. Of course it doesn't help that most customer service across the board has gone downhill faster than lava from a volcano. Companies have stopped caring about the little people and it shows.
Redditor u/silent_pm wanted to hear what decisions we've all made as consumers by asking...
What brand has lost your loyalty and will never reclaim it?
Half of Nothing.
Half Price Books.
We were going through a rough time during my freshman year- my mom was sick and out of work, we got behind on bills and lost the house, and ended up having to move into a tiny tiny apartment in the dead of winter. Since we wouldn't have enough room for everything, even with a storage unit, it was decided that I would have to get rid of some of my books. By some, I mean the majority of my collection.
In the end, I filled three storage bins with books I'd taken great care of growing up and we made our way to Half Price Books, foolishly thinking we'd get a fair price for what was essentially my childhood. At the selling desk, I made it very clear that I only wanted an estimate and would take my books elsewhere if I felt I was being lowballed. The girl at the desk assured me I'd get an estimate and told me to come back in an hour, considering how many books they would have to inspect. An hour later, I make my way to the desk only to be told that the most they'd give me was $15, take it or leave it.
I was heartbroken and outraged, and demanded that my books be returned, only to be told that some were already being processed into the system while others had already been thrown away, so there was no way I'd get them back. I ended up leaving in tears with only fifteen measly dollars and a broken heart to show for my troubles. I will never, and I mean NEVER shop or sell at Half Price Books again, and if ever anyone asks my opinion of them, I tell them about my terrible experience.
I simply cannot forgive a company that would see child making one of the most difficult decisions in their fourteen years of life and not only kick her while she's down, but rub salt in the wounds just because they can. Forget Half Price Books. jessicat707
I Hate You All!!
GiphyGillette because of how expensive their razors are.
Old Navy. Their clothes fall apart quickly. Not bad for toddlers since they go thru them so fast.
Time Warner/Spectrum. Cable company that does typical cable company bull.
Nestle. I hope they choke on acid rain. T4R6ET
Not the Way...
United Way (charity).
Coworker gets cancer and we set up a big jar in the cafeteria for donations to help her with treatments. United Way comes in and tells us that they have an "exclusive contract" with our company (large, international company) to be the sole recipient of any charitable donations on the property and demanded that we remove the solicitation jar and cease any fundraising for coworker's cancer treatment.
They had an annual "drive" where department heads competed to have the most donations and ongoing monthly contributions, but the next year the number of participants in the company dropped to almost nothing. Good. Javaman1960
Loyalty Over.
I freaking hate Adobe. I mean I was never really loyal to them but I've had the misfortune to require certain paid features of Adobe acrobat.
At Adobe everything is money. Money money money, must funny, in an Adobe's world.
I do my best to avoid having to use adobe products, except now I'm requiring substance painter (allegorithmic software... Owned by guess who). Hey at least the student license is free.
But forget adobe. Microsoft could also go screw themselves but I need windows, I hate apple just as much. I've tried Ubuntu but it's inadequate and painful for what I use a computer for. KasparTheFriendlyGuy
Not with moves like that.
Tim Hortons. Larger coffee chain in Canada. When Ontario raised minimum wage, they took away paid breaks, their dental plan, and started charging for uniforms. Completely bull from a company that makes millions and markets itself as so wholesome they're part of our culture. Not with moves like that. BeerDrinkinGreg
So Dumb...
GiphyBenefit cosmetics after their 'you don't need to be clever, you're pretty!' campaign. https://twitter.com/i/moments/884441051708174337CertainFurball
SA & AS are a No!
Salvation Army and Autism Speaks SA doesn't help any of the woman they take in, and are just horrible people. AS doesn't help autistics, they're more of a hate group towards them. Idk if those count. stardirection-
Don't be cheap...
Pyrex. They became trusted because their cookware was borosilicate glass which withstands temperature change super well, but now they switched to soda lime glass and rode their good reputation out with higher profit margins from cheap materials. SlabGizor120
The Best 'Actually, You're Speaking To The Boss' Experience | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
Old News....
GiphyKat Von D
I used to love her makeup - sometimes I'd even want to keep the packing just because I love the look and feel of it all. But she's an anti-vaxxer so now I don't feel like giving her any of my money.
eHarmony
I used to work there and upper management were racist, sexist, homophobic bullies. It's a dating site geared towards marriage and long lasting love, it should be heartwarming to know you're contributing to something like that. Instead I got anxiety so bad the physical symptoms were making my life miserable. I've had nothing positive to say about them since I left. lolihull
If that weren't enough.....
Sony.
My PS3 account got hacked and someone bought $400 in credits. I contacted Sony and they acknowledged I was hacked, returned my account to me, but refused to give me back my money.
If that weren't enough, I recently got an update on my PS3 that somehow made it unable to work at all. Hraklea
Viewer Monopoly....
GiphySpectrum, will ditch as soon as there is another option. OccasionallyLearning
Yep, they have a monopoly in my city currently, but there is a fiber company slowly spreading. We are switching as soon as it reaches our neighborhood. likemong
Thieves.
Doordash. After it came out that the company routinely keeps the tips rather than giving them to the driver, I said forget them. PermanentNirvana
Also they force restaurants to be on their service even if they don't consent or have their own delivery service. Crap is really scummy. WillTheGrimreaper
So here's how it works. you pay 10$ and tip 3$. the driver is supposed to get 4$. so instead of it being 6$ for DD, 4$ + the 3$ tip, DD would take away from the money they were meant to give the driver. so it would be 9$ for DD, 1$ + the 3$ tip to the driver. So the driver still gets 4$ but it includes the tip. I hope that makes sense. Incredibly scummy, i always tip delivery drivers in cash cause of that. lexid951
Quality over Name....
Black and Decker....
When they started, they made good tools, and continued for many years. They they went broke and sold the name to a mega-corp that slapped the name on their low-end, junk tool line
Brands don't mean anything. Product quality is all that matters. MpVpRb
"deactivate"
Planet Fitness. These fools towed my car while I was working out, and refused to reimburse the fee from the tow company. Then when I tried to cancel my membership, I'm told I cannot call I have to come in person or write a hard copy letter. I do the latter, they continue charging. I go in person, an associate "deactivates" the account but I still get charged the next month. Took a third attempt and speaking to a manager for them to surrender my crappy $10 a month. Kanedi4s
Fools.
GiphyExpedia
They regularly mess up bookings, refuse to take responsibility, refuse to refund money, lie to you and try to frustrate you into giving up on getting your money back.
No, Expedia, I will not accept credit to your service when you charge close to $1000 to my credit card without authorization. AreWeCowabunga
"we're closed"
Hertz.
They gave me a car with a missing oil cap and almost left me stranded in rural Germany.
We drove from Berlin to Neuschwanstein and noticed the car acting funny the closer we got. Afterwards we checked the engine to find oil everywhere. No worries, there was a Hertz in this small town. Unfortunately, the owner refused to help us as they "were closed" and said we have to call the company. This was also late, so every shop in town was closed.
We called Hertz and they recommended we "try putting a bag over it and driving back to Berlin." Luckily we found the cap (it was misplaced) and a number to Germany's equivalent to AAA. Forget Herz. W8sB4D8s
Forget you DC.
DevaCurl.
I have curly hair that's also very fine, and I'm really picky about the products I use—I can't use anything that will dry it out or weigh it down. A stylist friend of mine recommended DC to me back in 2012, and I loved it immediately. I went all-in, and for a while DC products were all I was using on my hair.
Apparently a couple years ago they were bought my another company, and the formula for a lot of their products changed. I didn't realize this. Meanwhile, my hair was starting to get really thin. It's normal for me to lose a little bit of hair in the shower, but it was getting really excessive. I figured it was just because I was getting older and my body/hormones were changing. I didn't event think that it could have anything to do with my beloved hair products.
Then I joined a group for curly-haired folk and learned that a lot of DevaCurl users were having the same issues with hair loss. Countless before/after photos convinced me that I wasn't just losing my hair due to bad genetic luck. I got rid of all my DC products and, after some research, started a new product regimen. Slowly but surely, my hair is starting to recover. I feel so betrayed, though. And despite hundreds of customers complaining to the company, they have yet to acknowledge or address the problem. Salsa__Stark
Oh Nestle...
Nestle. They're making a huge profit off of Canadian fresh water and paying next to nothing in taxes. DiarrheaKing021
Yes indeed. Not the only place they stole from.
Nestle pumped water for 28 years after its permit expired in the San Bernardino National Forest and continued pumping large quantities during severe droughts when surrounding residents and businesses were on water rationing.
They didn't stop until a local newspaper ran a series of investigative reports and national newspapers picked up the story. Then Nestle filed a lawsuit, hired the forest service employee who had supposed to be keeping the permits up to date, and quietly moved its operation to a nearby native American reservation where it continues to deplete the same aquifer. Meanwhile Nestle moved its US headquarters to another state to evade potential state regulation. doublestitch
"THAT'S BECAUSE SHE'S DEAD!"
Comcast. Many many years of foolery. Once I moved from a top floor apartment to a ground floor apartment in the same complex. I notified them ahead of time and they told me they had it all set so that it would switch that day, no problems at all. I called them about four times, a guy came out and looked at it, and then I spent a solid four hours on hold, only for the woman to come on the line and tell me I hadn't moved from Apt. 200 to Apt. 100, I had moved from 100 to 200. I explained she was incorrect, and she called me a liar.
In addition, my mother passed unexpectedly ten years ago. My sister immediately brought her Comcast equipment back and the company said they were so sorry to hear what happened, and there would be no additional charges from them and the account was squared away. As Mom's executor, I began receiving bills from them every month. Every month I would call and explain and they would say, "Oh, yes, I see the notes, we're sorry; it won't happen again."
Every month another bill would come, and every month it would be larger, with more late fees added. Finally after about the tenth time it happened I was really testy about it, and they were like, "Let me put you on hold; you'll have to speak to my supervisor." The supervisor gets on and immediately says, "The REASON your mother's BILL is so high is that she is NOT MAKING PAYMENTS!" and I lost it and screamed, "THAT'S BECAUSE SHE'S DEAD!" They put me on hold a looooooong time after that and when we were done, I never heard from them again. annaflixion
Treacherous.
GiphyGoodwill.
They are disguises as a charity when in fact they are nothing if the sort: https://www.nbcnews.com/video/some-workers-at-goodwill-paid-as-little-as-22-cents-an-hour-34172995713
When your regional CEOs get hundreds of millions as a BONUS, but they can legally pay WELL under minimum wage because the employee wouldn't otherwise be enjoyable... they are crap.
Their merchandise costs them NOTHING because it's all donated. They get huge tax breaks because of their charitable status.
They have many programs to help the disabled, but again, they themselves treat the disabled horribly. MyBroPoohBear
Experiencing death is a fascinating and frightening idea.
Who doesn't want to know what is waiting for us on the other side?
But so many of us want to know and then come back and live a little longer.
It would be so great to be sure there is something else.
But the whole dying part is not that great, so we'll have to rely on other people's accounts.
Redditor AlaskaStiletto wanted to hear from everyone who has returned to life, so they asked:
"Redditors who have 'died' and come back to life, what did you see?"
Sensations
Happy Good Vibes GIF by Major League SoccerGiphy"My dad's heart stopped when he had a heart attack and he had to be brought back to life. He kept the paper copy of the heart monitor which shows he flatlined. He said he felt an overwhelming sensation of peace, like nothing he had felt before."
PeachesnPain
Recovery
"I had surgical complications in 2010 that caused a great deal of blood loss. As a result, I had extremely low blood pressure and could barely stay awake. I remember feeling like I was surrounded by loved ones who had passed. They were in a circle around me and I knew they were there to guide me onwards. I told them I was not ready to go because my kids needed me and I came back."
"My nurse later said she was afraid she’d find me dead every time she came into the room."
"It took months, and blood transfusions, but I recovered."
good_golly99
Take Me Back
"Overwhelming peace and happiness. A bright airy and floating feeling. I live a very stressful life. Imagine finding out the person you have had a crush on reveals they have the same feelings for you and then you win the lotto later that day - that was the feeling I had."
"I never feared death afterward and am relieved when I hear of people dying after suffering from an illness."
rayrayrayray
Free
The Light Minnie GIF by (G)I-DLEGiphy"I had a heart surgery with near-death experience, for me at least (well the possibility that those effects are caused by morphine is also there) I just saw black and nothing else but it was warm and I had such inner peace, its weird as I sometimes still think about it and wish this feeling of being so light and free again."
TooReDTooHigh
This is why I hate surgery.
You just never know.
Shocked
Giphy"More of a near-death experience. I was electrocuted. I felt like I was in a deep hole looking straight up in the sky. My life flashed before me. Felt sad for my family, but I had a deep sense of peace."
Admirable_Buyer6528
The SOB
"Nursing in the ICU, we’ve had people try to die on us many times during the years, some successfully. One guy stood out to me. His heart stopped. We called a code, are working on him, and suddenly he comes to. We hadn’t vented him yet, so he was able to talk, and he started screaming, 'Don’t let them take me, don’t let them take me, they are coming,' he was scared and yelling."
"Then he yelled a little more, as we tried to calm him down, he screamed, 'No, No,' and gestured towards the end of the bed, and died again. We didn’t get him back. It was seriously creepy. We called his son to tell him the news, and the son said basically, 'Good, he was an SOB.'”
1-cupcake-at-a-time
Colors
"My sister died and said it was extremely peaceful. She said it was very loud like a train station and lots of talking and she was stuck in this area that was like a curtain with lots of beautiful colors (colors that you don’t see in real life according to her) a man told her 'He was sorry, but she had to go back as it wasn’t her time.'"
Hannah_LL7
"I had a really similar experience except I was in an endless garden with flowers that were colors I had never seen before. It was quiet and peaceful and a woman in a dress looked at me, shook her head, and just said 'Not yet.' As I was coming back, it was extremely loud, like everyone in the world was trying to talk all at once. It was all very disorienting but it changed my perspective on life!"
huntokarrr
The Fog
"I was in a gray fog with a girl who looked a lot like a young version of my grandmother (who was still alive) but dressed like a pioneer in the 1800s she didn't say anything but kept pulling me towards an opening in the wall. I kept refusing to go because I was so tired."
"I finally got tired of her nagging and went and that's when I came to. I had bled out during a c-section and my heart could not beat without blood. They had to deliver the baby and sew up the bleeders. refill me with blood before they could restart my heart so, like, at least 12 minutes gone."
Fluffy-Hotel-5184
Through the Walls
"My spouse was dead for a couple of minutes one miserable night. She maintains that she saw nothing, but only heard people talking about her like through a wall. The only thing she remembers for absolute certain was begging an ER nurse that she didn't want to die."
"She's quite alive and well today."
Hot-Refrigerator6583
Well let's all be happy to be alive.
It seems to be all we have.
Trying to lose weight is a struggle understood by many people regardless of size.
The goal of reaching a healthy weight may seem unattainable, but with diet and exercise, it can pay off through persistence and discipline.
Seeing the pounds gradually drop off can also be a great motivator and incentivize people to stay the course.
Those who've achieved their respective weight goals shared their experiences when Redditor apprenti8455 asked:
"People who lost a lot of weight, what surprises you the most now?"
Redditors didn't see these coming.
Shiver Me Timbers
"I’m always cold now!"
– Telrom_1
"I had a coworker lose over 130 pounds five or six years ago. I’ve never seen him without a jacket on since."
– r7ndom
"140 lbs lost here starting just before COVID, I feel like that little old lady that's always cold, damn this top comment was on point lmao."
– mr_remy
Drawing Concern
"I lost 100 pounds over a year and a half but since I’m old(70’s) it seems few people comment on it because (I think) they think I’m wasting away from some terminal illness."
– dee-fondy
"Congrats on the weight loss! It’s honestly a real accomplishment 🙂"
"Working in oncology, I can never comment on someone’s weight loss unless I specifically know it was on purpose, regardless of their age. I think it kind of ruffles feathers at times, but like I don’t want to congratulate someone for having cancer or something. It’s a weird place to be in."
– LizardofDeath
Unleashing Insults
"I remember when I lost the first big chunk of weight (around 50 lbs) it was like it gave some people license to talk sh*t about the 'old' me. Old coworkers, friends, made a lot of not just negative, but harsh comments about what I used to look like. One person I met after the big loss saw a picture of me prior and said, 'Wow, we wouldn’t even be friends!'”
"It wasn’t extremely common, but I was a little alarmed by some of the attention. My weight has been up and down since then, but every time I gain a little it gets me a little down thinking about those things people said."
– alanamablamaspama
Not Everything Goes After Losing Weight
"The loose skin is a bit unexpected."
– KeltarCentauri
"I haven’t experienced it myself, but surgery to remove skin takes a long time to recover. Longer than bariatric surgery and usually isn’t covered by insurance unless you have both."
– KatMagic1977
"It definitely does take a long time to recover. My Dad dropped a little over 200 pounds a few years back and decided to go through with skin removal surgery to deal with the excess. His procedure was extensive, as in he had skin taken from just about every part of his body excluding his head, and he went through hell for weeks in recovery, and he was bedridden for a lot of it."
– Jaew96
These Redditors shared their pleasantly surprising experiences.
Shopping
"I can buy clothes in any store I want."
– WaySavvyD
"When I lost weight I was dying to go find cute, smaller clothes and I really struggled. As someone who had always been restricted to one or two stores that catered to plus-sized clothing, a full mall of shops with items in my size was daunting. Too many options and not enough knowledge of brands that were good vs cheap. I usually went home pretty frustrated."
– ganache98012
No More Symptoms
"Lost about 80 pounds in the past year and a half, biggest thing that I’ve noticed that I haven’t seen mentioned on here yet is my acid reflux and heartburn are basically gone. I used to be popping tums every couple hours and now they just sit in the medicine cabinet collecting dust."
– colleennicole93
Expanding Capabilities
"I'm all for not judging people by their appearance and I recognise that there are unhealthy, unachievable beauty standards, but one thing that is undeniable is that I can just do stuff now. Just stamina and flexibility alone are worth it, appearance is tertiary at best."
– Ramblonius
People Change Their Tune
"How much nicer people are to you."
"My feet weren't 'wide' they were 'fat.'"
– LiZZygsu
"Have to agree. Lost 220 lbs, people make eye contact and hold open doors and stuff"
"And on the foot thing, I also lost a full shoe size numerically and also wear regular width now 😅"
– awholedamngarden
It's gonna take some getting used to.
Bones Everywhere
"Having bones. Collarbones, wrist bones, knee bones, hip bones, ribs. I have so many bones sticking out everywhere and it’s weird as hell."
– Princess-Pancake-97
"I noticed the shadow of my ribs the other day and it threw me, there’s a whole skeleton in here."
– bekastrange
Knee Pillow
"Right?! And they’re so … pointy! Now I get why people sleep with pillows between their legs - the knee bones laying on top of each other (side sleeper here) is weird and jarring."
– snic2030
"I lost only 40 pounds within the last year or so. I’m struggling to relate to most of these comments as I feel like I just 'slimmed down' rather than dropped a ton. But wow, the pillow between the knees at night. YES! I can relate to this. I think a lot of my weight was in my thighs. I never needed to do this up until recently."
– Strongbad23
More Mobility
"I’ve lost 100 lbs since 2020. It’s a collection of little things that surprise me. For at least 10 years I couldn’t put on socks, or tie my shoes. I couldn’t bend over and pick something up. I couldn’t climb a ladder to fix something. Simple things like that I can do now that fascinate me."
"Edit: Some additional little things are sitting in a chair with arms, sitting in a booth in a restaurant, being able to shop in a normal store AND not needing to buy the biggest size there, being able to easily wipe my butt, and looking down and being able to see my penis."
– dma1965
People making significant changes, whether for mental or physical health, can surely find a newfound perspective on life.
But they can also discover different issues they never saw coming.
That being said, overcoming any challenge in life is laudable, especially if it leads to gaining confidence and ditching insecurities.